The unofficial, unauthorized view of Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org. The Ancestry Insider reports on, defends, and constructively criticizes these two websites and associated topics. The author attempts to fairly and evenly support both.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

I recently made my first visit to the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA). This is one in a series of articles inspired by that visit to help you make your first visit to the National Archives.

HeritageQuest Online

HeritageQuest Online is available in qualifying Family History Centers and is free for use to many home users because their local library has a subscription to the service. Contact your local library to see if HeritageQuest is available in your area.

Like Footnote.com and FamilySearch.org, HeritageQuest also lacks a comprehensive list of NARA publications available. However, HeritageQuest is the only one among these sites that provides the ability to take a NARA census citation and bring up the corresponding census image.

Four of the six HeritageQuest search categories contain NARA records. I've included the NARA publication numbers for three of those.

"Search Revolutionary War" contains "selected records from the Revolutionary War Era Pension & Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files" (NARA publication M805) which contains some of the records from the full set. The full set (NARA publication M804) is available on Footnote.com which I covered previously.

"Search Freedman's Bank" contains records from Freedman's Bank from 1865-1874. The NARA title is "Registers of Signatures of Depositors in Branches of the Freedman's Savings and Trust Company, 1865 - 1874." and the publication number is M816.

"Search U.S. Serial Set" contains records from memorials, petitions, and private relief actions of the U.S. Congress. HeritageQuest describes the collection as containing both the United States Congressional Serial Set, (1817-1969) and its predecessor, the American State Papers (1789-[1816?]). The Congressional Serial Set, described here, is huge, containing over 14,000 printed volumes, doubtlessly containing copies of hundreds of thousands of congressional documents held by NARA. If your pre-visit or onsite NARA research uncovers a record for which the ARC catalog notes that some of the records were published in the "Congressional Serial Set," then use this HeritageQuest collection.

FamilySearch Record Search Pilot

The FamilySearch Record Search pilot is still too young to expect proper support for NARA citations or for finding aids for NARA records. Hopefully, product managers will incorporate these important features in the future. Because of the pre-beta state of this product, I won't bother to compile a finding aid for you at this time.

Ancestry.com now helps you visualize where important events occurred in the lives of your ancestors by placing their events on a map.

How to use itWe’ve updated the family tree so that just about anywhere we show a place, you can click on that place and see the link on the map. ... In addition to viewing the important places in your family members’ lives, you can also find places to help you in your research efforts. We have links to show local cemeteries and courthouses, and “Other Places” link displays a list of additional display options where you can find historical information—churches, historical sites, libraries and archives, and government buildings.

Then Wednesday afternoon website performance started to suffer. Messages started showing up online asking about the problem. By late afternoon, Ancestry.com was dead. I'm not certain how long it was down, but it was back up by evening. This "signature" is consistent will rolling a change to the website that destabilized operations. Did something new roll live? Was it fixed or did Ancestry.com "roll-back" the changes?

Queries to company spokespersons about the cause of the crash went unanswered. Then the announcement, above, went away. I looked around for the map feature and was not able to find it, so either the feature went away or I was looking for it in the wrong place.

Now the announcement is back, but this time it includes a bold warning that the software is in beta form. And several known bugs are noted. If you have feedback on this new feature or any other member tree problem, Kenny Freestone is in listening mode. Leave a comment on the announcement or send email to (kfreestone at tgn.com). If you don't want Kenny to see your complaint, attach your comment to this article.

Monday, November 24, 2008

I recently made my first visit to the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA). This is one in a series of articles inspired by that visit to help you make your first visit to the National Archives.

NARA records on Footnote.com as of November 2008

Footnote is second only to Ancestry.com in the number of NARA publications available on its website. And unlike Ancestry.com, all Footnote.com content is available for free to patrons (that includes you) at a Family History Center near your home.

On the other hand, unlike Ancestry.com, Footnote.com doesn't provide a way to assist the researcher to find a publication using the NARA publication number or the NARA title. Hopefully this is an inadequacy Footnote.com can soon fix.

For the present time, the good folks at Footnote.com provided me a current list of NARA records available on Footnote.com. I'm not certain if the titles shown are the NARA publication titles or the Footnote.com titles. Also, no indication is provided as to the number of NARA microfilm rolls currently included in the Footnote.com publication of the same, so there is no way to compare the roll count to the total number of rolls currently available from NARA.

In the list, below, I've created hyperlinks for each publication. Click on the NARA publication number to go to Footnote.com's online, digitized copy of that publication. The publications are sorted in publication order. Use your browser's find or search capability to quickly locate a publication number or search for a keyword in the title.

At the bottom of this article are six publications or collections without NARA microfilm publication numbers. Presumably, these are collections that Footnote has digitized directly, saving the time, expense and trouble of going to microfilm before going to digital. If that is the case, then these are records that previously were never visible outside the walls of the National Archives and Footnote.com deserves kudos for going beyond digitizing NARA microfilm.

At last Spring's FamilySearch Developers Conference keynote speaker, Ransom Love, mentioned the problem of the many names by which FamilySearch was known and said that the organization would standardize under the umbrella of the FamilySearch brand. (See his slide, above or to the right.)

A quick check in the Utah Department of Commerce Business Entity Search did not yet show any changes to the registrations for FamilySearch or Genealogical Society of Utah but a spokesman for FamilySearch confirmed that the changes were under way. There has been no formal announcement concerning the name change nor specifics regarding how the change would be affect other brands of the organization: the Genealogical Society of Utah, the Family History Library or Personal Ancestral File.

How the change will affect the status of the organization within its parent, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, has also not been made public and all issues may not have been decided yet. Currently, the organization is known as the Family History Department within the Church, reflecting a reorganization earlier this year splitting the family history and church history departments. While it is known that new identification cards for employees are forthcoming, it is not known if the cards will reflect the FamilySearch brand. Nor is it known if personnel will be employees of the Church or the new FamilySearch International.

An unintentional side-effect of the new name is that a Google search for "FamilySearch International" returns a zillion false hits on "FamilySearch International Genealogical Index." Oh well.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

I recently made my first visit to the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA). This is one in a series of articles inspired by that visit to help you make your first visit to the National Archives.

NARA records available in your home town

Wouldn't you just die if you spent a bunch of money to visit the National Archives only to find that what you want is available in your own library? Don't even ask me about the time I flew to Salem, Massachusetts to visit the Phillips Library of the Peabody Essex Museum only to have them give me a FamilySearch/GSU film.

Many of the most popular NARA records of genealogical significance have been microfilmed or digitized for online access. Like my experience at the Peabody Museum, even if you show up in person to see an original record held by the archive, you'll be directed to a computer or a microfilm if the record is available in one of these forms.

The primary advantage of accessing NARA records from home is, of course, except for a lucky few in the D.C. area, it is cheaper than traveling to Washington. The challenge in accessing NARA records online or at a local Family History Center (FHC) is discovering what records are available, since NARA partners don't always do a good job of allowing visitors to search by NARA publication number or title. I've poked about and collected some information in that regard that should help.

Archives.gov

Archival Research Catalog (ARC) - The "card catalog" of the National Archives. A very, very few items in NARA's huge collection have been digitized and can be found using the Digital Copies search or accessed from the Digital Copies tab of any catalog item that has a digitized copy.

ARC is a work in progress and currently contains descriptions for just a small number of the items in NARA's collections. And of those items, not all the names have been entered into the People search. I imagine as the 5-year deadlines expire on partner agreements, the resulting names and images will drop right into these slots on ARC.

Ancestry.com

Ancestry.com sets the standard in helping NARA patrons access NARA publications that Ancestry.com has placed online. Not that it can't be improved upon, but other vendors would do well to check out the minimum standard set by Ancestry.com.

To access NARA collections on Ancestry.com, click the appropriate link shown below depending on where you are trying to access Ancestry.com from.

- Click Home if you are at home, however some collections will require a subscription.
- Click NARA if you are at any National Archives location, including presidential libraries.
- Click FHL if you are at the Salt Lake Family History Library.
- Click Library for a public library or institution with the Ancestry Library Edition by ProQuest.

The intent of the second page is to list NARA collections alphabetically by publication number, so you can browse through the list. To be more certain, use your browser's Edit > Find (or Search) function and search for the publication number and if necessary by part of the title. The roll count is given so that you can check to see if Ancestry.com has published all the records available. Incomplete collections result when NARA adds additional films to a collection, such as military service records or when Ancestry.com incrementally publishes a large NARA collection, such as naturalization records.

This page is currently created by hand, but Ancestry.com spokesperson, Mike Ward, tells me they are planning to automate it so that it will always be up to date. Until then, you may want to consult the Ancestry Card Catalog in addition to this page.

Family History Library (FHL) Microfilm

I venture to say, if it isn't available online, if NARA has published the records on microfilm then your local family history center (FHC) can probably get a copy on loan from the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. There are 4,500 centers worldwide and most provide microfilm access.

The Family History Library Catalog indicates it has over 1,500 NARA publications available on microfilm.

"National Archives microfilm publications" - Click on the link for a list of over 1,500 NARA microfilm publications available from the Family History Library for viewing in a family history center. (Thank's to FamilySearch's David Ouimette for providing this link.)

Identifying the FHL film number corresponding to a NARA publication number is not always straightforward. Sometimes the NARA publication number is listed in the FHL catalog (FHLC), but not always. For example, M881 is cataloged as M0881. And M1819 is not mentioned in its catalog entry. The correspondence between some NARA publications and FHL film numbers is given in these FamilySearch publications:

1790-1840 Census register : a listing of Family History Library microfilm numbers for the 1790-1840 United States Federal Census population schedules

The 1850 census register : a listing of Family History Library film numbers for the 1850 United States federal population schedules

The 1860 census register : a listing of Family History Library film numbers for the 1860 United States federal population schedules

The 1870 census register : a listing of Family History Library film numbers for the 1870 United States federal population schedules

The 1880 census register : a listing of Family History Library film numbers for the 1880 United States federal population schedules and indexes

1890 U.S. census : index to surviving population schedules and register of film numbers to the special census of Union veterans - gives FHL film numbers, but not NARA roll numbers

1900 census register : a listing of Family History Library microfilm numbers for the 1900 United States federal census population schedules and indexes

The 1910 census register : a listing of Family History Library film numbers for the 1910 United States federal population schedules and indexes

1920 Census register : a listing of Family History Library microfilm numbers for the 1920 United States Federal census population schedules

1930 census register : a listing of Family History Library microfilm numbers for the 1930 United States federal census population schedules

"Computer Numbers for selected National Archives microfilm publications," U.S. Military Records Research Outline - Click the NARA publication number to see the FHLC entry. Click the link on that page to see FHL film numbers. Doesn't show NARA roll numbers.

Notice: The Ancestry Insider is independent of Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org. The opinions expressed herein are his own. Trademarks used herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The name Ancestry Insider designates the author's status as an insider among those searching their ancestry and does not refer to Ancestry.com. All content is copyrighted unless designated otherwise.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Theoretically, one more temple went live with New FamilySearch (NFS) this week, although there has been no official acknowledgment (that I've found). Mexico City, closed for renovation, was rededicated Sunday and reopened yesterday with New FamilySearch. That brings the total number of temple districts using NFS to 107.

As I predicted, hearing nothing following the release of NFS 0.94 in August 2008 was bad news and almost certainly means that NFS is not coming to the red zone (Utah, Idaho, Vegas) in 2008. Following that release, the rumor mill fell remarkably silent. In the words of one discouraged support volunteer, tired of waiting for NFS to come to the red zone, "we missionaries can't get any more response ... than '...we don't know when.' [Even] we 'insiders' can't get the straight scoop."

New release of New FamilySearch coming

While the red zone may not see NFS this year, following the usual mid-quarter release schedule for NFS, NFS 0.95 should be showing up some time soon. I checked the NFS beta website. It goes away until a new release is imminent. I found it is present, so a new release is coming!

I examined the beta and found a new link on the home page. Circled in green in the screen shot to the right, there is a new icon and link that promotes 3rd party vendors that have certified products that work with NFS. I won't say anything about the page it links to, as it looks preliminary at this time.

The red band across the screen indicates that this is the beta website. This hopefully helps hapless honchos who happen onto the beta, work hours and later wonder who hijacked his family history. The link and icon to the list of recent updates brings up a document that confirms a planned November 2008 release. Since this document is available freely at a well-known URL publicly available to all, I think I can share some of the contents with you.

Be warned, however, that I am not in-the-know and the features I mention may or may not make it into the final release of NFS 0.95.

Jewish holocaust victims

It appears that FamilySearch sponsor, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is adding a step to the temple ordinance process asking Church members not to submit unauthorized names of Jewish holocaust victims. The Church member is required to read the temple submission policy and click a box indicating compliance.

The policy as stated in a recent Church press release specifies that Church members should not submit holocaust victims for temple rites "except in the very rare instances where [Jewish holocaust victims] have living descendants who are members of the Church." Helen Radkey, Church critic, reports that Church members continue to disregard this policy.

Other improvements slated for NFS 0.95 are

Support for Firefox and other Mozilla 2.0 or later browsers.

Announcement of certification for another 3rd party desktop genealogy program. I don't know if I can mention which one because I don't know if an announcement has been made or not. Let me get back to you after I ask the RootsMagic "Insider"... Oops... Oh, heck! And I was already in trouble with Gordon Clark for talking with... uh... Never mind.

Latest red zone rumor

I have good news and I have bad news. The good news is, that after an extended draught of NFS rumors, a mailing list participant just shared a lengthy one. The bad news is.... Well..., read for yourself. Jill Crandell said,

I was in a meeting [13 November 2008] with [high ranking FamilySearch official,] Craig Miller. He indicated that the goal was to have the remaining temple districts online by the end of 2009. However, they are in "research" mode, and they can't determine how long it will take them to solve the problem of the very large records when the LDS pioneers are merged. He said they have some records where there are thousands (maybe tens of thousands) of entries for the same person. ... The roll-out is on hold for the rest of us until that problem is solved.

In the meantime, they [FamilySearch] recognize the problem of people on the Wasatch Front submitting temple work that is not being checked [for duplicate ordinances in NFS temples]. They feel that they will ... be able to update the IGI and nFS [before] they solve the [large record] problem. So, [relief is coming] for those concerned about duplication of efforts, [and] is coming sooner than we will be on the new system.

It could be sooner than the end of 2009. But of course, there was a previous goal to have it out by the end of 2008. And one before that to get it out by 2007. And....

This is another in a series of encyclopedia-like articles written by the Ancestry Insider. Some serve as extensions to my failing memory while others give me someplace to link to for information that may not be known by all readers.

Helen Radkey

"Helen Radkey is an international renowned religion and genealogical researcher, writer and lecturer," according to her speaker bio from the 2003 convention of American Atheists. In 2002, Alana Newhouse, interviewed Radkey for an article in the Jewish newspaper Forward. Newhouse identified Radkey as a minister in the independent Universal Life Church, a tarot card reader, a former Catholic, an excommunicated Mormon and a past-life therapist who makes ends meet as a bookstore employee.

But Radkey seems to have found her calling in life researching the International Genealogical Index (IGI). Find an article critical of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (sometimes called the Mormon Church) and its practice of performing baptisms for deceased individuals and you will find Radkey's name.

In addition to Jewish Holocaust victims, her past revelations about the IGI have disclosed that vicarious temple rituals have been performed for famous saints, sinners and fictional characters. (Reuters) Radkey's revelations about the IGI are consistent with the way she described her writing to the American Atheists: "provocative and controversial."

Yet Radkey is a woman of contradictions.

Radkey has pitted Jews against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "She has been a prime mover behind the outcry over posthumous Jewish baptisms... She's a darn good part of the reason why anything has gotten done on this issue." (Forward)

On one hand, "according to Radkey, ... the church has not properly monitored the names offered for baptisms." On the other hand, she says, "Learning about Jewish names is a specialized skill, which took me years to develop, and it is not always possible to know by a name if the person was Jewish. Most Mormons who handle the processing, including deletions, of Jewish names from the Mormons' database would not know a Jewish name from the back end of a hoe." (Forward)

Radkey has pitted Jews against Catholics. "I can't be a part of any church that did what the [Catholic] Church did to the Jews," she said. (Forward)

Radkey has pitted gays against Catholics. "The Catholic Church ... is out of touch with social reality on the gay issue and has itself caused immeasurable damage to society because of its large number of pedophile priests." (Deseret News)

Radkey has pitted Catholics against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "I personally had a meeting with Vatican officials in November 1998 over the proxy baptism of Catholic saints and popes, so I'm happy to see some kind of resolution [against the Church of Jesus Christ...]," she said. (KSL)

Radkey has pitted Jews against Jews, saying, "Why have these Jewish leaders collectively abdicated their moral and ethical responsibility to ensure that the provisions of the agreement [between Jewish groups and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints] are finally and firmly enforced?" (JewishGen.org) "In an e-mail sent to Aaron Breitbart, senior researcher at the Simon Wiesenthal Center, Radkey lashed out at [Ernest] Michel, [chairman of the World Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors]. (Forward) Forward observed that "to seasoned observers, hearing this Catholic-cum-Mormon-cum-wannabe-Jew telling an esteemed Holocaust survivor and organizational leader how to represent a Jewish cause might seem like some sort of interfaith 'Twilight Zone.' "

On one hand, Radkey expresses a desire to be part of Judaism. On the other hand, she says "the rabbis here don't want me." (Forward)

Radkey has pitted the Church against Jewish groups. In September of 2002 Radkey asked the Church to pay $30,000 plus continued payments if she would give them a list of Jewish names she had uncovered in the IGI. The Church declined. (Forward) Later that year, Ernest Michel met with the Church armed with a report prepared for him by Radkey. (CNN)

Nothing on earth left to do

In late 1992, Billie's husband came into the house, sat down in his favorite chair and passed away.

Billie's husband—we'll call him Robert—was a volunteer at a Family History Center (FHC) in Southern California where he worked the Tuesday shift. Unbeknownst to Billie, in frustration Robert had been telling other volunteers at the center that he had exhausted all possible research avenues on his father's line and was unable to break past the road block.

"I don't know what on this earth I can do to get more information," he reportedly said.

Three months after her husband's passing, in early 1993 Billie received a letter from England addressed to Robert. A woman had discovered his address in the files at the Family History Library years earlier and wondered if they shared a common lineage. The relative confessed she had meant to write for some time. She provided enough information that Billie was able to verify they shared the same line. She quickly returned a response and asked her husband's newly found English relative if she had additional information.

With joy Billie received a response a few weeks later extending Robert's father's line back six generations.

What led this relative to finally make contact at this time? Why this relative who had the exact information Robert sought? And why so soon after Robert's death?

Monday, November 17, 2008

I recently made my first visit to the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA). This is one in a series of articles inspired by that visit to help you make your first visit to the National Archives.

Colored sheet finding aids

National Archives staff have prepared over 160 pages of finding guides to assist researchers with their most common records. These guides are printed on various hues of colored paper. They can be found on a rack in the lobby once you arrive at the Archives.

While the National Archives has decided not to put these guides online, fortunately, the Mount Vernon Genealogical Society has decided to fill this void. The Mount Vernon Genealogical Society is located in the Washington, DC suburbs where society members are lucky enough to make frequent visits to the National Archives. Some members work there.

Harold McClendon, publicity chair for the society, says,

To make these sheets available to everyone, the Mount Vernon Genealogical Society is placing all of the guides on its web site in PDF format. The guides are organized into the following categories: African Americans, Asian Americans, Census, Citizenship, Civilian Federal Employees, District of Columbia, Early Congressional Private Claims, Immigration, lands, Military, Native American and 1885 State and Territorial Censuses. As new sheets are issued by the National Archives, copies are being added to the web site.

As you review the guide, you will then be better able to determine the specific publication to review in search of the desired records. You might even find that the National Archives has publications that you never knew existed.

Thank you, Harold McClendon and the Mount Vernon Genealogical Society for extending this service to the genealogical community.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

I am attempting to find the pricing for ancestry.com I want to have a family tree style book made for my mother for Christmas & I am not sure the exact way of getting the information and having a book made without spending hundreds of dollars. Any suggestions and direction?

Thanks so much

Fawn Eutzy

Publishing your family tree as a gift for loved ones is a wonderful idea, but it is not without cost. Your primary cost will be in hours of preparation. And I'm always surprised how expensive a professional quality book runs. For your children, an electronic copy (PDF) can be as satisfying as a physical book. But for an older relative, nothing will be quite as meaningful as something they can hold in their hands and smell as the pages are turned for the first time.

While Ancestry.com is not the only way to publish a family tree book, it is the only one offered within my stated editorial coverage. And it is the only one I've tried. Fortunately, they also address the two costs mentioned above.

Cost in dollars

Building your tree in Ancestry.com is free. Building your book in Ancestry.com (and their MyCanvas system) is also free. And printing your book to your own printer or to a PDF file is also free. If you don't already have a PDF printer driver, you can buy one, but Dick Eastman reviews several free PDF printer drivers.

Having the capability to produce a PDF copy of your book gives you the freedom to find the most economic place to print your book. That may be Ancestry.com or it may be another online or local printer. Lulu.com is one of the more well known print on demand online printers. A Google search for "print on demand" will give you more choices and more information. Most local printers can also do print on demand jobs, including major copy centers such as Kinkos (now called FedEx Office) which offer cheaper cover/binding choices for the truly economically minded.

Costs for professional printing using Ancestry.com's MyCanvas start at $35 for a basic book of up to 20 pages. Larger pages and higher quality covers add to the price. Additional pages are 0.50 for 11 x 8.5 inch pages or 0.80 for 14 x 11 inch pages.

Cost in time

Ancestry.com gives the capability of automatically generating all the pages of your book from your online tree, which can save a substantial amount of time in creating your book. First upload your tree via a GEDCOM file. Then before you create your book, upload a primary photograph for each person on your pedigree. Other photographs can be uploaded later, but any primary photographs for persons on your pedigree will automatically be included at the appropriate places when you create your book.

If you have an Ancestry.com subscription, you can also use the shaky leaves to attach records to individuals on your pedigree. These records will also be included in your automatically created book, but can quickly bloat a 5-generation book to a hundred pages and an $80+ price tag per book.

Another time saver is the ability to use photographs you've already uploaded to Ancestry.com, MyFamily.com, SmugMug or Picasa.

If you're really pressed for time, consider creating a pedigree chart poster. I gave one to my mother last year and she loves it. Well, she tells me the picture of my father at 4 years of age is actually his brother... But other than that, she loves it.

Monday, November 10, 2008

In a recent article, Ancestry's Ranked Search, I crossed the line and called GNW "stupid." I should not have done that. I am sorry. From this point on, I will not be making nor allowing personal attacks on this blog. I have gone back and re-written the offensive article. And I am temporarily turning off reader comments.

Explaining a joke

Nothing sucks the humor out of a good punch line like needing to explain it. I hope the same is not true of creative writing, but in this situation those I've offended deserve an explanation.

On the surface, each of my articles has an initial layer or level of meaning which is, hopefully, informative and entertaining.

In recognition of the great conversation, in my writing I try as often as possible to include a second layer of meaning for the well educated. I try to invoke a reference to some part of culture, general knowledge, literature, science, etc. Whether to a movie, a book, an author, or something else, each is an unstated, intellectual challenge between friends.

Such references are sometimes subtle and sometimes blatant. For example, the article Indexing Tora! Tora! Tora! has several references or inside jokes. "Tora, Tora, Tora" is the most obvious, for history and movie buffs. "Laurels" is a pun for a smaller audience, LDS Church members. And for the smallest group of all, the oriental characters contain an obtuse pun between the Japanese phrase "tora, tora, tora" and a Chinese word for mediocre. (I was delighted to receive an email from a reader who recognized the Chinese half of the pun!)

This last one is an example where I've added a third-level of meaning to an article. Sometimes the second level references are just for fun. But whenever I can, the inside reference itself contributes an additional meaning to the primary topic. The second-level Japanese/Chinese pun on the word mediocre re-enforces one of the editorial criticisms I leveled in the article. Simultaneously, it forms a triangular relationship by invoking the idea of awakening sleeping giants. In this case, Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org are the giants, each sleeping in its own way.

With three-levels of meaning, when you add in research and fact-checking, it is no wonder it takes me almost an hour a paragraph to write my articles!

Other examples:

PAF, NFS and the Princess Bride is an interesting example that had no first level. It was written entirely in the second level, with the third level carrying FamilySearch news and issues.

Census Image Quality contains several famous quotes from Jane Austen's Emma. Did you catch them all?

The title of Misadventures in Indexing is a reference to a similarly titled series from one of my favorite bloggers. I received a letter from a puzzled reader unfamiliar with the reference and consequently confused by the title.

Ancestry's Ranked Search, the offensive article, has a blatant reference to pop culture, the House television show. On the first level I presented the philosophy behind Ancestry's Ranked Search. On the second level I presented Dr. House's assumptions about people. On the third level, I responded to GNW as though I were Dr. House.

I am stupid

Boy, that was stupid. I assumed I could write using Dr. House's offensive style and readers would see it as a caricature, whether they were familiar with the show or not. I assumed that an offensive caricature would not offend anyone (just as we are able to laugh at caricature in cartoons and on Saturday Night Live). In hind sight, these assumptions were wrong. I apologize to all whom I offended.

I also apologize for criticizing complainers about the lack of actionable examples. Without experience in the software industry, it isn't very fair of me to expect you to be able to write a good bug report ("actionable example"). I don't doubt your earnestness or sincerity. Witness Reed, who must have spent at least an hour writing up a response with statistics on user complaints from several message threads on the Ancestry.com blog.

The ombudsman no longer

When I took on new search I hoped to identify the problems and get them fixed. I had precious little time to spend looking for the problems myself, so it seemed logical to elicit bug reports from the many complaining customers. Ironic that instead of getting your problems fixed we merely offended each other.

In closing, I have decided I will no longer assist readers in getting Ancestry.com bugs fixed. It was very gratifying to be able to help many of you. While an employee of Ancestry.com I had the time, the access and the motivation to see your issues through to completion. None of these are true any longer.

My news coverage of Ancestry.com will remain unchanged. And my education and persuasion attempts will continue for advanced search technologies like relevance ranking and context-enabled searching. So stay tuned...

Friday, November 7, 2008

I recently made my first visit to the National Archives and Record Administration (NARA). This is one in a series of articles inspired by that visit to help you make your first visit to the National Archives.

Pulling Records

Records on microfilm are self-service (open stack) and can be accessed at anytime, but original records are not directly accessible to the public, requiring a NARA employee to pull the records from private stacks for patron use. Normal pull times are 10am, 11am, 1:30pm and 2:30pm. On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday there is an additional pull at 3:30pm.

A specialist at one of the reference desks must approve your pull request (to see that you've included all the necessary information) before you can submit it. During my visit staff members arrived several minutes prior to the pull time to gather up the forms to allow the pull to start right at the scheduled time.

There are limits on the number of pulls you can submit, but I'm not certain what they are.

Once an item has been pulled for you, it is available for multiple use for several days (I think up to 30), even during extended hours. What you don't want to happen is to find yourself at 2:30pm (3:30pm Wed.-Fri.) with no records pulled and no requests in and nothing to do. (Although even that is not the end of the world. You could still use microfilms and several subscription web sites on the patron computers. Stay tuned for more information about the available records online.)

The Reference Service Slip (pictured below) is used to request a pull of most record types (motion picture, sound recording, maps and generic textual records). You'll use this slip for records you track down in the Finding Aids room.

Military service records use a special pull request form, the Request for Military Records. For indexed military records, you have to consult the index on microfilm and fill out the proper file numbers. Don't worry; there are handouts to guide you through the process and consultants at the reference desk.

In the future I'll talk about the procedure to see the records. I may go through an example in detail.

Research Card

To view original records, you'll need to obtain a researcher identification card. While the website and GIL 71 state that you can register for a research card during extended hours, my wife was not allowed to do so at Archives I.

I got my research card at Archives II, so forgive me if the process is a little different at Archives I. Ask at the reception desk, but I believe you'll proceed past the information desk into the next room, and then go to the far left end of the room. To receive a research card, you must be 14 years of age or older, have a photo identification and a rudimentary knowledge of what records you intend to examine.

You'll read through a short slide presentation on a computer that covers the basics of record handling. After 20 to 30 slides taking 15 to 20 minutes you'll fill out and submit a form with your contact information. Then you'll go and get your picture taken. They will then create and give you your finished card. You can see mine to the right.

Once you have a research card, anytime you sign in to the archives or to a research area, you can jot down your research card number in lieu of your contact information. If you skipped signing in at the reception desk and/or the reference desk to get your card, return to each and check to see if they want you to sign in.

Before you make your visit to the National Archives, it's suggested, although not required, that you call ahead and verify current hours, pull times and availability of your records of interest.

Hours

The best time for your first visit to Archives I is during business hours, Monday through Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm, since specialists are available to help you and original records can be pulled for you. Congress has funded extended hours for the remainder of 2008 for Archives I to be open Saturday (9am to 5pm) and evenings on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (9am to 9pm).

Normal pull times are 10am, 11am, 1:30pm and 2:30pm. On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday there is an additional pull at 3:30pm. Plan on arriving at 9:00am to allow time to make it through security and submit one or more pull requests no later than 9:50 in order to have original records pulled in the first pull. Wait to get your research card until after you've submitted your pull request. More on pulls later.

Security

When you enter Archive I (remember to enter from the Pennsylvania Avenue side) you'll find yourself in the security area, as shown at the bottom of the map to the right. You'll immediately be directed to your right to pass through airport-style security. Then you'll proceed to the security desk to register your electronic equipment and personal documents.

To prevent documents from being stolen from the archives, you should not bring any documents with you. If it is absolutely essential, you'll have to justify the need with the security officer who will probably do something to identify your documents so that you can take them with you when you leave. I didn't bring any, so I don't know what they do. Maybe they stamp them all or fill out a document receipt so they can be readily identified as your personal property when you leave. This makes it easy for security when they inspect you on your exit of the facilities.The archive will supply paper and pencils for note taking.

After signing in, the security guard will give you a building pass that you must clip to your clothing and display at all times. If you plan on using original records, be sure to get the color that allows that. I think it is yellow.

Equipment receipt

You'll be asked to show laptops, digital cameras and other electronic equipment. With prior approval, you can even bring flatbed scanners. The security officer will fill out an equipment receipt identifying the serial number of some of the devices you bring in to facilitate easy checkout when you exit. For multi-day visits, save your receipt; it is good for 90 days.

Lockers

Proceed past the security desk and straight on into the next room. If you have a quarter, turn left and go all the way into the locker room. You need a quarter for your locker, so if you don't have one, turn right and go all the way to the cashier who can make change for you.

Stow all belongings, briefcases, backpacks, boxes, laptop cases, handbags, coats, jackets, sweaters (if you aren't wearing it), etc. in a locker. Keep nothing but your wallet, money, photo ID and/or research card, approved notes, laptop and digital camera. Lockers are available in all sorts of sizes, regardless of how big your need is. Slip the quarter into the lock on the inside of the door. Close the door and take the key with you. The quarter is refundable, so you can get in and out of your locker as often as needed. When you open your locker, retrieve your quarter from the slot beneath the lock.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

I love Ancestry.com. One idea I pushed while I was at Ancestry.com was a browser toolbar. To the best of my knowledge, no actual work was started before I left. Now, a little short of four months later... (Yikes! Four months! I forgot to exercise my stock options! Shoot! Ancestry.com, I don't suppose you'd give me a 30-day extension? But I digress...)

I suppose someone may have been working on it, but as fast as Ancestry.com's developers are, it wouldn't surprise me if this entire project has been put together since I left. It looks like they've utilized some Yahoo code libraries or such to do it.

"To do what?" you ask?

The Ancestry Toolbar.

To see their announcement, click on Introducing the Ancestry Toolbar. Basically, it's a browser toolbar that lets you attach information and photos you find on the Internet to your Ancestry member tree.

I love this concept. I still need to try out their implementation, however. Attaching a record you find on the web to your Ancestry member tree is analogously to attaching records that you find on the Ancestry.com website. This is really slick stuff and is another step forward in allowing researchers to pursue "source-centric" genealogy.

Private message to Kenny

I have some suggestions to make trees even better. Your approach is, of course, photograph and text-blob driven because you suspect it will appeal to a broader audience. That's fine, because even serious genealogists, as opposed to those interested more in winning the game of pedigree bingo blackout than they are in a laborious search for people to whom they can prove a relationship, even serious genealogists like and enjoy photographs and biographies. In fact, I'd venture to say we enjoy them even more, being more likely to savor the real people we come to know through rigorous and thorough seeking. And that's not even factoring in the important research tool that these artifacts are.

There are three simple improvements you can make to Ancestry.com's tree system that would give a huge return in capability.

Treat web-based and disk-based records and artifacts on an equal footing.

Treat Add a life event and Save record to tree on an equal footing.

Treat non-Ancestry.com records on an equal footing with Ancestry.com records.

For each of these three points you have code that conceptually does the same thing in two different ways. You already have all six pieces of code. A little UI work, a little duct tape, and voilà: magic.

Let me elaborate.

I can upload photos from my local disk. In the same interface, let me also specify web addresses.

I was too lazy to try this. If I use my browser to view a photograph file on my local computer, will the Ancestry Toolbar work if I click Save? What about a photograph file out on the web? Or does it only work when viewing an HTML page?

There are two ways to add a life event to the timeline on the Person Page (Add a life event and Save record to tree) and neither one gets it totally correct.

Add a life event lacks the ability to produce the historical record link on the timeline display:

Save record to tree doesn't support the full range of life events or key pieces of information for many databases as does the Add a life event code. There is no way to set the event type or to add desired fields. In the example below, date and location are known, but the tree system doesn't allow specification of a residence event or the date and location.

If I upload a photograph of a record, no life event is added to the timeline.

If I use the Ancestry Toolbar to Save a record, no life event is added to the timeline.

Making these three improvements would make Ancestry.com the premier online tool for source-centric genealogy.

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The Ancestry Insider is consistently a top ten and readers’ choice award winner. He has been an insider at both the two big genealogy organizations, FamilySearch and Ancestry.com. He was Time Magazine Man of the Year in both 1966 and 2006. And he really is descended from an Indian princess.

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The Ancestry Insider was a readers’ choice for the top four genealogy news and resources blogs, part of Family Tree Magazine’s “40 Best Genealogy Blogs” for 2010. He reports on the two big genealogy organizations, Ancestry.com and FamilySearch. He was named a “Most Popular Genealogy Blogs” by ProGenealogists, and has received Family Tree Magazine’s “101 Best Web Sites” award every year since 2008. A genealogical technologist, the Insider has a post-graduate technology degree and holds a dozen technology patents in the United States and abroad. He has done genealogy since 1972 and has worked in the computer industry since 1978. He was Time Magazine Man of the Year in both 1966 and 2006. And he really is descended from an Indian princess.

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